It has been on my heart to build bridges between the congregation and the secular community (hence it also became the topic of my doctoral thesis). Its material expression was the construction of the first Methodist church (Agape Church) built in Estonia after the World War II IT was carefully designed to be community centre for the Rääma district in Pärnu. Immaterial expression of this was to formulate sermons in such a way that they could also be understood by people who were completely new to faith.
Since then, my focus has been more and more on worship, how to make it a well-thought-out single whole; leadership (for seven years I organized Christian leadership conferences in Pärnu); and a mission. Since 2005 mission has been my main occupation and has taken me to lecture on mission theology in many countries on different continents.
Courses: Pastoral Leadership
Ministry Experience:
Pastor of the Pärnu AGAPE UMC 1983 – 2004
Lecturer at the Baltic Methodist Theological Seminary since its beginning 1994
Pastor in Residence in Asbury UMC, Tulsa, OK 1998 – 1999
Lecturer at the Tartu University Pärnu College 2000 – 2004 (Leadership and Organizational Management; Introduction to Philosophy)
Regional Representative for Europe, Eurasia, North Africa & Middle East in General Board of Global Ministries of the UMC since 2005
Education:
Doctor of Ministry – Beeson Program in Asbury Theological Seminary, USA 2000. Major in Biblical Preaching and Church Leadership. Doctoral thesis “Building Culturally Relevant Bridges for the Gospel between the Local Church and the World at its Door”.
Theologische Hochschule Reutlingen, Reutlingen 1991
Kingsmead College, Birmingham, UK 1991
Theologisches Seminar der Evangelisch-methodistischen Kirche, Bad Klosterlausnitz 1988 – 1990
Tartu Ülikool, English language and literature, 1980 – 1983
Church Membership:
Pärnu AGAPE UMC, Estonia
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